Category: Food and Wine

Jan Ellis pudding is basically a baked sponge pudding that’s covered in a creamy syrup. Jan Ellis was the most capped Springbok rugby player (he played flank) when he retired, with thirty-eight caps to his name.

Huisgenoot phoned Jan’s wife Hyla in Bronkhorstspruit to trace the recipe’s origins. She got the recipe from a friend, who got it from her Aunt Vossie of Stellenbosch. They first named the pudding Vossie, but one day someone phoned to ask for Jan’s favourite pudding, for publication. She gave the recipe for Vossie, but when it appeared it was called Jan Ellis’s pudding. Now everyone knows it by this name!

Preheat oven to 180 °C (350 °F). Spray a 2 litre ovenproof pudding dish with non-stick cooking spray. Dissolve bicarbonate of soda in milk. Mix remaining batter ingredients together, stir in milk mixture and mix very well. Spoon batter into dish. Don’t use smaller dish even if the batter seem to be too little for the dish. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes.

Photo credit: purplecalabash.com

Sauce – mix all sauce ingredients together and bring to boil. Pour the hot sauce (little at a time) over the pudding while still hot (straight after removing from oven). Stand for a while to allow sauce to settle/absorb. Serve with custard or ice cream.